After 'bitter' end, how does 2023 compare to Djokovic's best-ever seasons?

“One of the best years. I wouldn’t say the best, but one of the best.”

That is how Novak Djokovic reflected on his 2023 season at the Nitto ATP Finals.

Djokovic capped off another golden campaign by winning the ATP Finals for a record seventh time, adding to three more Grand Slam titles and another year-end No. 1 finish.

So impressive was Djokovic throughout the last 11 months that renowned tennis coach Brad Gilbert wrote on X during the ATP Finals that Djokovic is having the “best year potentially on the men’s tour in 50 years”.

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2023

Win-loss record: 56-7Titles: 7Grand Slams won: 3Year-end finish: No. 1

Why does Brad Gilbert believe Djokovic’s 2023 season could be the best on the ATP Tour in 50 years?

Here are a few of the reasons:

A 27-1 record at the Grand Slams (his only loss coming against Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final)Finished as year-end No. 1 for a record-extending eighth timeDidn’t lose before the final of a tournament after May (not including the ATP Finals where he lost in the group stage to Jannik Sinner)Passed 400 weeks as world No. 1

And all at the age of 36.

‘One of the best seasons I’ve had in my life’ – Djokovic rejoices at ‘phenomenal’ ATP Finals win

In fact Djokovic looks as good as ever. He certainly doesn’t seem to be slowing down judging by the way he reeled off 19 wins in a row after losing the Wimbledon final and looked far stronger than his closest pursuer Alcaraz down the stretch.

Being able to prioritise tournaments helped in that regard, but that is a privilege Djokovic now has, and he is making it work for him, with his success at the Grand Slams and in the latter part of the season showing how he balanced his workload effectively.

The arguments against 2023 would be that Djokovic didn’t play as much as he did in some of his other great seasons, and he didn’t face the same level of sustained competition as he did when he was up against Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.

But again, he is now 36, and that he has been so dominant this season against far younger rivals, all hungry to topple him, is remarkable.

2015

Win-loss record: 82-6Titles: 11Grand Slams won: ThreeYear-end finish: No. 1

Can 2023 really stack up against 2015, a season when Djokovic reached the final of every tournament he entered except one?

A season when he won three Grand Slam titles and lost in the final of the other at the French Open. When he was No. 1 throughout the whole year, won the ATP Finals, and had a 15-4 combined record against Federer, Nadal and Murray.

“It’s the best year of my life,” Djokovic said at the time.

The defeat to Stan Wawrinka in the final of the French Open stung, but this was still one of the most dominant seasons seen on the ATP Tour.

Novak Djokovic (R) beat Roger Federer in the 2015 US Open final

Image credit: Getty Images

Djokovic beat Federer in five finals over the course of the season, including Wimbledon, the US Open and the ATP Finals. He also beat Nadal and Murray in finals in the last couple of months of the campaign and finished with a 15-4 record against the rest of the ‘Big Four’.

His total of 11 titles is the most that he has achieved in a season so far in his career.

2011

Win-loss record: 70-6Titles: 10Grand Slams won: 3Year-end finish: No. 1

If 2015 was Djokovic dominance throughout, 2011 mostly stands out for an incredible 41-match winning streak that ran from the Australian Open until defeat to Federer in the French Open semi-finals.

The run saw Djokovic beat Federer and Murray in Melbourne, Federer again in the Dubai final, Federer and Nadal in Indian Wells, and then Nadal in the finals of Miami, Madrid and Rome. The streak overall was 43 matches (with two from the end of 2010) and is the third-longest in ATP history.

The clay wins over Nadal were particularly notable as Djokovic had lost all nine previous meetings against Nadal on his favourite surface. And there was more pain for Nadal as he was beaten by Djokovic in the Wimbledon and US Open finals.

Djokovic, who saved two match points in the US Open semi-finals against Federer, would finish the year with a remarkable 10-1 combined record against Nadal and Federer.

Roger Federer (R) inflicted Novak Djokovic’s first loss of 2011 in the French Open semis

Image credit: Getty Images

So good was Djokovic in 2011 that John McEnroe said after the US Open that he was having “the greatest year in the history of our sport”.

Pete Sampras added: “At least in my lifetime, the best ever.”

The blemish on the season is the post-US Open period, when Djokovic didn’t win another tournament and lost to David Ferrer and Janko Tipsarevic as he was eliminated in the group stage of the ATP Finals.

2021

Win-loss record: 55-7Titles: 5Grand Slams won: 3Year-end finish: No. 1

Just 62 matches, a measly 88.7 per cent win rate, and only five titles?

Is 2021 really up there with Djokovic’s greatest seasons? You could make the case.

Djokovic was on course to become the first man to ever achieve the Golden Slam after winning the first three Grand Slams of the year. At the French Open he played at a superb level to beat Rafael Nadal in the semis, describing it afterwards as one of the top three performances of his career.

Novak Djokovic won the 2021 French Open

Image credit: Getty Images

He then won Wimbledon to secure his 20th Grand Slam title, moving him level with Federer and Nadal.

There was crushing disappointment to follow at the Olympics, where he lost to Alexander Zverev in the semis, and the US Open, where he was beaten in straight sets in the final by Daniil Medvedev.

But this was still a season for the ages – and one that set the tone for Djokovic’s Grand Slam dominance in 2022 and 2023.